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Facebook looking at IPO in first quarter: report
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Facebook Founder & Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg, launches Facebook's ''open compute program'' at Facebook's headquarters in Palo Alto, California April 7, 2011.
Credit: Reuters/Norbert von der Groeben
NEW YORK |
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Facebook is preparing to file for an initial public offering as early as October or November that could value the popular social networking site at more than $100 billion, financial news channel CNBC reported on Monday.
Goldman Sachs is leading the chase to manage the lucrative offering, which could come in the first quarter of 2012, CNBC said.
With more than 500 million users, Facebook is the world's most popular Internet social network and one of the most hotly-anticipated initial public offerings on Wall Street.
Facebook, whose chief operating officer last month told Reuters that an IPO was "inevitable," declined to comment on the latest report about its timing for an offering.
Anticipation about a Facebook's future plans comes at a time of heightened investor appetite for shares of fast-growing social networking companies.
Professional networking site LinkedIn Corp launched its own IPO last month, valuing the company at about $7 billion.
Earlier this month, daily deals site Groupon Inc filed to raise up to $750 million in an IPO, fueling speculation that Internet valuations have become too rich.
Founded in a Harvard dorm room in 2004 by the now 27-year-old Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook threatens Internet companies like Google Inc and Yahoo Inc as it becomes a popular online destination for Web surfers and an important marketing channel for advertisers.
Facebook was valued at $50 billion earlier this year when Goldman Sachs invested in the company.
Recent transactions of Facebook shares on the secondary market have valued the company between $78 billion and $81 billion, according to information on the website of Sharespost, an exchange for trading shares in private companies.
Facebook is expected to generate roughly $4 billion in advertising revenue in 2011, up from $1.86 billion a year earlier, according to market research firm eMarketer.
(Editing by Steve Orlofsky, Gerald E. McCormick and Bernard Orr)
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However, ads on Facebook work .. I have clicked through often enough to know that they get my attention. And I used them once for a charity event and received numerous clicks that brought in more than I spent.
Valuation has some value when pricing a stock, but so do supply and demand. While P&E is a good place to start, the longevity of a company coupled with the possibility of amateur investors hoping to get in on another Google will drive the likelihood of initial investors hoping to make a quick buck. LinkedIn was a good example. I couldn’t get in on the first wave, but I also knew better than to jump in at the opening bell and buy it. At 45 it was a good deal, but even at it’s current price of 74, I think I’ll pass.
Purchasing stock is partly a guessing game trying to stay ahead of what the sheep do. For every person that sells thinking a stock has run out, or there are better opportunities elsewhere, there is another person buying that same stock thinking just the opposite.
My oppinion: Evil company. Overblown value, no substantial assets, just some fashionable freaks riding the wave. Same with google. Time will tell if the invested money ever willreturn something in lets say 20 years. Google for example is all over the place.. no focus. This billion heavy Mark Zuckerman or Zuckerschlecker or what ever his name is is playing the role of the wolf in the dress of the sheep… so go ahead and feed him more money. For myself, i would not touch them with a 10 ft pole, no matter how high the returns may be. Ethics is an important part of business and to sell your friends and family information to this evil is just a no go.
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